Awakened School Choices (1 Viewer)

[mamapaige]

We are trying to make education choices for our young children. As a former elementary teacher, the concept of public schooling no longer resonates with me as a recently awakened being. I do not desire to teach public school or have my children educated in this manner.

We are currently looking into Montessori ($$$), Waldorf ($$$), homeschooling, and outdoor learning to determine what is best for our family. So far we are leaning towards homeschooling/outdoor learning due to finances.

This got me wondering what other awakened parents and families are choosing as pathways for their children's education. I'd love to hear what you are doing, have done, or are considering. Thanks!

 

[Anaeika]

My kids are going into STEM, a universal language and important for the future.

 

[Linda]

I understand the need to make this choice. Public schooling was getting iffy when our kids were there many years ago. The kids that live around us now are in public school, but this particular elementary school is really good with all sorts of special programs. I do have some younger friends who've gone the home schooling route. In order for their kids to have contact with a larger group, they enroll them in after school activities like gymnastics or dance (all girls I admire parents who make this commitment to their children's well-being.

I do not know much about STEM and am interested in learning more.

 

[mamapaige]

My kids are going into STEM, a universal language and important for the future.

Is this offered through public school in your area? Or charter? I've seen this for older kids in our state and it does look like a nice alternative.

 

[mamapaige]

I understand the need to make this choice. Public schooling was getting iffy when our kids were there many years ago. The kids that live around us now are in public school, but this particular elementary school is really good with all sorts of special programs. I do have some younger friends who've gone the home schooling route. In order for their kids to have contact with a larger group, they enroll them in after school activities like gymnastics or dance (all girls I admire parents who make this commitment to their children's well-being.

It does seem to depend a lot on each school. Our local elementary seems okay, but I'd love to get my active learners outside more and help maintain their natural love of learning.

I love the idea of having access to different language, music, or activity lessons during the day. We also have a parent partnership program where families can join together daily or weekly for learning as a group. We are still worried about the social aspect.

 

[Laron]

Have you looked into unschooling (at home)? A nephew of mine has been doing that for most of his education. He's 11 now. His mother was previously involved with creating an alternative schooling group in their local area.. and I am trying to recall the name of it... democratic it was. Here is URL's for that which I think is what I am referring to: http://alternativestoschool.com/articles/democratic-schools/. She didn't stick with that for long but she got what she needed out of the experience.

I don't know of any specific material or books in regards to unschooling, but there is a wiki page: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Unschooling (Hopefully it's not too judgemental). I do think it's important for the child(s) to have group excursions with other children if possible (with other home schoolers), when being home un/home schooled, and that they have a strong social circle to make up for not having the social contact at school, but at least with home un/schooling you have better control of who is around your children in such a circle.

I was never home schooled but I did go to a Rudolf Steiner High School after being in a number of different public schools when growing up. Another sister of mine is a long term public elementary school teacher over in NZ and has been involved in a few other Government jobs where she has written curriculum's for programs in public schools, so I have been around the essence of this topic a bit, not that I have personal experience with children (yet!).

 

[Angela]

Our current plan is to do a sudbury school. It's kind of like unschooling in a school. The kids choose whatever they want to work on and it's a little appealing to me because it would offer a lot more resources than i may be able to get, he would be around a ton of other students and interests, and i also wouldn't need to worry about getting together the paperwork to prove he's getting schooling (as far as I'm aware. ) they are insanely relaxed from what i can tell and from the sources I've seen, every student and teacher has an equal say so they are treated like an equal to adults.

https://www.youtube.com/shared?ci=XXOhQuSPRJA

This is a video of a guy who explored it pretty well. While being entertaining, it's a very informative video about the option.

That's tentatively our path.

 

[Anaeika]

I understand the need to make this choice. Public schooling was getting iffy when our kids were there many years ago. The kids that live around us now are in public school, but this particular elementary school is really good with all sorts of special programs. I do have some younger friends who've gone the home schooling route. In order for their kids to have contact with a larger group, they enroll them in after school activities like gymnastics or dance (all girls I admire parents who make this commitment to their children's well-being.

I do not know much about STEM and am interested in learning more.

Here is the STEM (science, technology, engineering, & mathematics) school I fell inlove with:

http://www.thebranchschool.org/

They are small & like a family, most of the learning takes place outside in nature, & they follow the golden rule. The lunches they serve are all organic. Their graduates end up doing something humanitarian. Their hearts grow along with the sciences, so it's very well balanced. They also concentrate on foreign language & creative arts too.

If I could afford it, then I would put my kids there, but there are some public STEM schools here too. Need to win a lottery to get in.

 

[Lila]

We have found that the choices vary dramatically from location to location. Also, there are a lot of choices that are infrequently talked about that may be best for your child/ren, so asking around can make a big difference.
Our choice has been public school with lots of support which we feel able to give, based on public schools that met our criteria.

Lots of choices. Lots of fodder for great conversations. Lots of information can be had if one looks.

Probably no 'wrong' choices, just ones that are more or less suited to your child/ren and situation.

 

[Golmona]

Thank you for your post mamapaige! After vaccines, education is probably the topic my husband and I discussed the most and am finding some useful information from all the comments so far. (Had not heard of STEM before!)

I do think it's important for the child(s) to have group excursions with other children if possible (with other home schoolers), when being home un/home schooled, and that they have a strong social circle to make up for not having the social contact at school, but at least with home un/schooling you have better control of who is around your children in such a circle.

This is such a crucial aspect throughout all age groups. My son is 10 months now and since we have decided to opt out of nursery we are organising 'playdates' at home just so he gets that interaction with others similar of age.

 

[Anaeika]

Thank you for your post mamapaige! After vaccines, education is probably the topic my husband and I discussed the most and am finding some useful information from all the comments so far. (Had not heard of STEM before!)



This is such a crucial aspect throughout all age groups. My son is 10 months now and since we have decided to opt out of nursery we are organising 'playdates' at home just so he gets that interaction with others similar of age.

I am staying home w my 2 & 4 yr old preschoolers bc I believe that it is good for their development and why would I want to miss this chance to be with them during this time in their lives. They are growing up fast!
For playdates, I recommend finding a Moms Club chapter in your neighborhood. If you are in the United States, they are in all 50 states. Also try story times at the public libary.

 

[Golmona]

I am staying home w my 2 & 4 yr old preschoolers bc I believe that it is good for their development and why would I want to miss this chance to be with them during this time in their lives. They are growing up fast!

Couldn't agree more Anaeika! Am so grateful for that as well. Am always told how lucky I am that we can afford me staying at home and while I totally agree that I am one lucky girl I find people tend to forget that it's a decision we made, a conscious decision. We've had to make some sacrifices and adjustments, but we feel it's totally worth it. I find the first 5 years extremely crucial, in terms of setting the right foundation, and having a parent stay at home is an important aspect of that.

For playdates, I recommend finding a Moms Club chapter in your neighborhood. If you are in the United States, they are in all 50 states. Also try story times at the public libary.

Great suggestions, thank you!

 

[Laron]

Here is an article on the Daily Mail from September, 2016, which talks about a couple who are unschooling their child.

• Paul and Caroline King decided to take their sons travelling over school

• Winston, 6, and Hunter, 4, are learning with parents whilst jet setting

• The couple 'will not force their children to go into education system'

"'We’ll never force the boys to go to school or take an exam. We don’t raise our voices to the boys, so why should a teacher be allowed to?'"​

Full article here: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-3795024/We-NEVER-send-school-Couple-two-sons-aged-6-4-travelling-world-controversial-global-unschooling-trend.html

 

[Carl]

"'We’ll never force the boys to go to school or take an exam. We don’t raise our voices to the boys, so why should a teacher be allowed to?'"

Interesting article Laron. I wonder how those children will cope with business/real life situations in the future. They better be prepared to handle rejection, conflict, jealousy, stress, etc., and yes, even somebody raising his/her voice at you, which is normal for example in the work place. Management normally does not care if they hurt your feelings while demanding you carry certain tasks properly.

I have seen many employees, specially the new generations, crumble under circumstances that the older ones can handle easily and many times even found exciting and challenging, spurring them to achieve grater heights, while the young ones just went to pieces. Instinctively we tend to protect our children often times without thinking about what will they face in the future when they will likely face many harsh realities and we won't be there to protect them anymore.

 

[Laron]

I think that it's extremely important to understand that our makeup is primarily based on the years up until our early twenties, as they are when our chakras more fully form. For example, if something is suppressed based on a parent yelling at us, then that can heavily influence us from having energetic blocks form; health issues and mental problems are more likely to manifest as an adult. One of the best resources to understand some of the concepts around this which I have come across is Working With Your Chakras by Ruth White. My detailed article on the chakras here on the forum can also help a lot, as all this heavily relates to how you bring up your child.

I wonder how those children will cope with business/real life situations in the future. They better be prepared to handle rejection, conflict, jealousy, stress, etc., and yes, even somebody raising his/her voice at you, which is normal for example in the work place.

In terms of the above article and situation the parents have created with their children, if they have strong social circles with other children their age who they can bond with and who resonate more with who they are, then I'm sure that that is a much healthier environment that any public school system on offer in the western world. If they are traveling the world for most of their childhood, that would present them with many social situations so I don't see an issue with that, as they would likely have a larger variety of children/friends in their lives than remaining at the same school.

With raising our voice, if we are not coming from ego (anger, rage, frustration, fear, etc) and we have the right body language (which would be natural if we were not coming from ego), then I don't see an issue with speaking a bit louder to make someone pay attention, but most of the time this is not the case. Sound is everything, so if we present our words in the right way, we can speak loudly and it then will not cause harm. For me I am very sensitive to people shouting, not just from being an intuitive as I pick up on the energies and vibration behind words (as well as being empathic to peoples emotions), but also because of how I was treated when growing up in terms of my shadow and inner child. I had to go through a lot of healing from dealing with my parents having raised voices, and I see this as a very negative and unhealthy situation, which of course made me who I am but continues to partly influence how I react and respond.

 

[Golmona]

This quote from "Ecological Literacy: Educating our Children for a Sustainable World" by David W. Orr came to mind, which I think is quite pertinent:

“The plain fact is that the planet does not need more successful people. But it does desperately need more peacemakers, healers, restorers, storytellers, and lovers of every kind. It needs people who live well in their places. It needs people of moral courage willing to join the fight to make the world habitable and humane. And these qualities have little to do with success as we have defined it.”